About this work
Richard Wilson was the first significant British artist to travel to Italy. This view of the largest of the imperial baths is one of an important set of Rome landscapes commissioned by the 2nd Earl of Dartmouth. These drawings were based on sketches made on the spot. The use of black and white chalks, blended with a stump, over grey paper enabled Wilson to focus on ‘the principles of light and shade’ — in his eyes, a fundamental task of landscape painters. The dark foreground figures add depth to the composition.
(Permanent collection label)

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